Lunchbox Ideas

[RedBedHead]

Noah starts school in just a few weeks and I want to try to keep him as healthy there as I have been here at home.
If you guys have any good lunchbox ideas please share.

[IUgrad02]

I took my lunch every day of school practically b/c I was such a picky eater. My mom tried to come up with everything under the sun to keep me eating healthy. Luckily, I was picky, but not in the area of fruits. That was the one thing that saved me. I love them. So, I made up for the veggies that I lacked, etc. when I ate tons of fruit. Here are some of the things mom would send with me.

-apple slices (sometimes with caramel or peanut butter in a little tub)

- celery sticks with peanut butter on them and raisins on top - those had a name- I think she called them "ant _____" - gosh I can't remember- but he might like those b/c they are themed. the little raisins look like ants crawling up a log.

-fruit roll ups - loved those!

-trail mix or GORP - we used different things for this: GORP usually has granola type stuff, raisins, peanuts, and M&M's - that's what we used- I guess we didn't use the O! But this is a yummy yet healthy snack.

-Raisins and pretzels mixed together are also yummy.

-Always Always yogurt. That was a given. I loved it and I needed the calcium. They have great kid enticing ones now too.

-Lots of kids like string cheese.

-Peanuts

_sunflower seeds

-grapes or any other easy to handle fruit


Those are just some of the ideas I have- I'll try to think of more. I hope this helps!! I'm all for bringing your lunch - I work at a school, and the school lunches never seem to be as good as what my mom would send me. :blush: I love my mommy. :)

[RedBedHead]

Originally posted by IUgrad02
I love my mommy. :)

Me too!!! Mommy's rock! Great ideas! Thank you! Noah loves all of those foods (esp. string cheese). I just want to be able to mix it up a bit for him.

[cookienap]

when my kids get bored with the same ol pb and j. i sometimes make whatever they are having on tortillias.. ham and cheese, or whatever. they also love fresh fruit. it can be a real hassle making lunch for them and the bf everyday so sometimes they eat at school and even in kindergarten i had them help me with whatever i thought they could handle. now that they are in 2 and 3 grade they make lunch by themselves while i watch.

[Mel-icious]

Originally posted by IUgrad02
-apple slices (sometimes with caramel or peanut butter in a little tub)
- celery sticks with peanut butter on them and raisins on top -
- fruit roll ups - loved those!
-trail mix or GORP -
-Raisins and pretzels mixed together are also yummy.
-Always Always yogurt.
-string cheese.
-Peanuts
_sunflower seeds
-grapes or any other easy to handle fruit



Great suggestions!!!

I'll add some I've collected from around the web, I googled before for ideas for my girls when they are older and now. My memory is shot and I can't remember how old Noah is, but these can be used for when he is a little older if they seem to out there for him:

-Make sandwiches fun, grab some cookie cutters and make the sandwich in different shapes

- muffins, ham and cheese, or make sweet ones for treats

- Leftover pizza, homemade, or take out, or even made from
bagels. {great for kids who like cold pizza :gag:}

- Make roll-ups instead of a sandwich. Just lay a thin deli slice of ham or turkey on top of a thin deli slice of cheese and roll them up. Spread on light cheese spread or canola mayonnaise before you roll it up if desired. Cut them in half and wrap them in foil. Throw in a few wheat crackers to complete the meal.

-Leftover fried chicken breast or chicken breast strips can be a nice lunch alternative. To keep the chicken cold, pack a frozen box of fruit juice next to it {I'd make my own oven fried to make it more healthy}

-Pack soup with a spoon and some oyster crackers or other fun crackers. {I'd use goldfish crackers}

-Pack a picnic with crackers, cheese, meat slices (choose lean salami, ham or turkey), and some fresh fruit. The kids can make their own cracker sandwiches. You can also use tuna salad, egg, or chicken salad with the crackers, just pack them all seperately, they have great little containers out now for this.

-I may have the only 4 year old that likes this, but chef salads, salads with grilled chicken, or even pasta salads would be great, just pack the dressing seperate for lettuce salads.

- Bean dip or hummus and baked tortilla chips.

-cut up veggies with ranch dip.

- Make fruit kabobs of cubes of favorite fruits using thin strips of celery for skewers. {I wonder if skewers would be against the rules of some schools and considered a weapon? :eek:}

-peeled hard boiled eggs, or even devil them if your son likes them that way.

[CC21]

Originally posted by IUgrad02
- celery sticks with peanut butter on them and raisins on top - those had a name- I think she called them "ant _____" - gosh I can't remember- but he might like those b/c they are themed. the little raisins look like ants crawling up a log.

We call them "Ants on a log"... Is that what you call them?

[RedBedHead]

OMG! I feel horrible! Here I am scrolling through these ideas for lunches and using them religiously and I have failed to thank you all. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Mel, I love the pizza idea! That's what he's having tomorrow.
Megan, string cheese and yogurt are MUSTS! Thank you.
Joni, we called them ants on a log also.

Tons of ideas guys! Hopefully I'll stick with these ideas as opposed to PB&J!

[heather6773]

My younger son will ONLY and I mean ONLY take PB and FLUFF sandwiches evry day to school for lunch. He hates PBJ and refuses to eat unless is the before mention PB and fluff sandwiches. I add in string cheese and fruit to balance out the fluff. I only put enough on so he sees it and I use the natural PB . I hope the boy gets sick of them cause I seriously buy a jar of fluff every week. Its so gross to me. He won't try ham or turkey. On occasion he will eat a piece of bolagna. But not in a sandwich. These ideas are coming in handy. My other son only buys his lunch. I'm lucky we live in a small school district so the lunches are healthy.

[RedBedHead]

Since I originally posted this we have moved Noah to a private school. We have found that he likes to buy his lunch also and I like that. It's healthy and less work for me.